TEDxCaltech - Danny Hillis - Reminiscing about Richard Feynman

Danny Hillis is an inventor, scientist, author and engineer, and is chairman and co-founder of Applied Minds.  Previously, he was Vice President and Disney Fellow at Walt Disney Imagineering and was a co-founder of Thinking Machines Corp. Danny pioneered the concept of parallel computers that is now the basis for most supercomputers, and RAID disk array technology used to store large databases while completing his PhD at MIT. He holds over 150 U.S. patents, and is the designer of a 10,000-year mechanical clock.  Danny is also the Judge Widney professor of engineering and research medicine at the University of Southern California, and serves as co-chairman of The Long Now Foundation, and is on the board of the Hertz Foundation. He is a Fellow of the Association of Computing Machinery, of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the International Leadership Forum, and a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

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[thomasbostick]

"I'll be dead but I won't be entirely gone." How absolutely right he was. I was very fortunate to be an undergrad when he was actively around on campus. He'd just finished "The Feynman Lectures" with Leighton and Sands, often showed up at undergrad parties, usually with one or two Playboy Bunnies on his arm, and gifted us with a physics lecture in which he presented Newton's explanation of gravity in the original terms that Newton used, i.e. entirely based on esoteric properties of conic sections with no reference to calculus (not yet accepted by other physicists). But the greatest memory was when he showed up at Zorthian's Ranch (google Zorthian, Feynman's friend, teacher in live figure drawing and notorious character) at a big undergrad barn dance after winning the Nobel Prize. He spun a long, involved, utterly captivating story of why they should ask your permission before giving you the Nobel. "You must wear white tie and tails", "but I don't wear suits, let alone white tie and tails", "but you're presented to the King of Sweden", "I'm an American, we don't believe in Kings!", "But the Swedish people Love their king! He's a constitutional monarch and a symbol of their history", "OK, if I must, but I do object", Feynman goes home, wife greets him at the door and demands money. "Why?", I need a dress for Sweden!", "You have lots of nice dresses.", "But you'll be in white tie and tails!". Feynman resigns himself to ignoble defeat.

[sanjaytumati]

Dan looks like he is expending a lot of effort to prevent himself from bursting into tears

[boogiecat]

what an incredible guy feynman was, i just wish there was more footage. 2 bbc documentries are brilliant to watch 10 times over.

[peter-radiantpipes]

My grandfather was a professor at Caltech at the same time as Feynman. I wish I could have been old enough to ask more questions. He himself had a very amazing life.

[mike]

Wow, this seemed really heartfelt. I'm sure it was really hard for him to openly reminisce about his dearly loved friend. Support to him for doing this.

[ottorinoori]

For all of us, proud employees @  245 First Street, both Danny and Richard have been inspiring guides, Ciao OTTO 

[RaiWitt]

I've read this already a couple of years ago, a very touching talk indeed. Both Danny Hillis and Richard Feynman have my deepest respect.

[teejmd]

Good speech, I also had tears >_<, Feynman was such a great person and I won't forget him.

[RWBHere]

Wow. That was not easy. Thanks, Danny Hillis, for making the effort to share that insight with us.

[JordanBeagle]

4:18 Talk about making the best of negative situation, what a legend

[PapiJack]

Who the f#$% dislike something like this? There is always a slow one in every bunch. Dick was a great influence on many people. Including young scientists who never saw him alive. Many would argue the biggest contribution to science in the 20th century was made by Einstein. I disagree, if we factor in how inspiring Feynman was during his career along with his scientific contributions he has to be the most influential scientist of the past century. My two cents.

[ffggddss]

I remember where I was when I heard JFK had been assassinated,  when I heard MLKJ had been assassinated, when I heard that the WTC towers had fallen, and when I heard Feynman had died.

Each of these times, I suddenly felt I was living in a somewhat smaller world.

[Tonicwine]

Thanks Danny, was hard to watch and I can see that it was hard for you to tell these stories.

[JordanBeagle]

Very touching, glad he could find the positives for even nearing death

[Tonicwine]

Obviously Feynman was impressive however I didn't think the stories were lame at all. I though they were interesting and heartwarming. Danny Hillis was interesting enough to hang around and even employ Fenyman

[unmensch]

My nomination for most awesome people of the 20th Century is split between Norman Borlaug and Richard Feynman

[rodsims]

he was the average guy, and love the feeling of KNOWING, what is really going on, and then was ... some .. how able to convert that into wonderfully simple analogy's, , I loved it when he said .. " yaaaa Ok, But ? WHYyyy does it do that ?? with his open hand turning in the air .. I really miss him, and I never even knew him, yet in a way I did . sorry if that was boring .

[nishparadox]

This was sentimental in more funny way... :)

[Nautilus]

You're kidding me - there's a wealth of lectures he gave that are on youtube! Search!

[Tonicwine]

I've watched it all and there's nowhere near enough footage of him.